[Spoiler: I discuss a scene from the movie below.]
"[T]ells the story of a Jewish family that emigrates to Kenya during World War II to escape the Nazis and run a farm" with various family struggles arising. Based on true events, but use of internal dialogues and other devices -- even if the author did some research -- suggests it is only "based on the truth." The same appears to be the case with her first "African novel," also in some fashion based on fact.
Stefanie Zweig wrote the novel, but it is not just through her eyes. We thus see events through the eyes of many characters, including some pretty minor ones. This adds to the book though be it the translation or the original, it is a bit bulky and draggy at times. The expression of emotions and so forth comes off as heavy-handed. We meet the author in the DVD extras, another DVD with so much material that even those who don't watch the film have lots to see. It would be interesting to learn the differences between truth and fiction here.
The film, though I did not know it when I first saw it, was my first introduction to Juliane Köhler, who already started down the road of playing WWII era characters. The film changes various details but is generally loyal to the novel, though various things are compressed to allow it to fit in the different genre. One example of this is that the father's friend isn't the one who picks up the daughter at school (the scene of the cocky British solider going to the headmaster cut anyway) but the father himself. This mostly works though the final third of the movie appears a bit disjointed, too much material needing to be compressed in about an hour of film.
Also, and for some reason it does not appear (not when it occurs; I did not listen to the whole commentary) to be discussed, the film has the mother have an affair with a British soldier to get help when they are detained at the beginning of WWII (ironically, there are "enemy aliens" in British Kenya). In the book, a totally innocent explanation is provided (another emigrant couple), and it is striking given again the author is still alive and all. How did she feel about the implication her mother committed adultery, even if one understands why?
Overall, I would recommend both the novel and the film, particularly if you want to meet the actors and the author by checking out the DVD. One interesting tidbit of the sort you pick up on commentary is the fact that the father is played by someone from Georgia (country) so had a thick accent, resulting in the need of dubbing. However, we hear a bit of his actual voice when he speaks English. Those in the business might recognize this fact, but I surely couldn't tell, except perhaps if I really tried to see. After all, some films are poorly dubbed or remastered, so the voices don't totally match the filmed dialogue anyways.
Definitely a means to step into another world.